In a recent fishing trip off Hopes Nose in Torquay I caught 14 dogfish
using a variety of baits.

The advice I was given by a neighbor (keen fisherman) is this;

1. Be careful how you hand them. The sort I caught are known as 'rough
dogs' because their skin is like sand paper. They try to wrap themselves
around you when you try to get the hook out (you'll need a good pair of
pliers), and they can take your skin off without any effort (apparently
the their skin was used years ago for sanding down boats!). I found the
easiest way was to hold the tip of the tail against the side of the head.

2. They are buggers to skin and the easiest way is to gut them, cut off
the fins, head and tail and drop it in to boiling water for a maximum of
30 seconds. Then scrape the skin with a sharp knife, finally rinsing
under cold water.

3. Cut the skinned fish into stakes and then freeze for at least 1 week
to kill the ammonia in the fish and stop them tasting ****y.

4. The best way to eat them is to batter them and deep fry them and
serve with a plate of chips.

Cheers,



Angus Robins wrote:
Last post generated some v. interesting debate. Felt that I learnt loads.
Have stuck with the carp tackle, got some decent lures and floats and
although not immediately successful I am hopeful. Have found a spot under
some cliffs with a good forty to fifty feet of water under the rod tip.
I want to fish mackerel strip but feel that my size 6 o'shaugnessy hooks are
a bit on the wee side. Also, I now know that dogfish are considered a
nuisance in many places, but I am interested in catching a few for the
plate.Do they fall to float fished or bottom baits? What depths of water /
types of terrain are they found in?Any advice/guidance?

Cheers,
Angus,
Applecross